UFC heavyweight and Hyannis native Christian Morecraft leaves MMA

Mark Daniels Tuesday, March 26, 2013

Christian Morecraft is calling it quits.

The Hyannis native and UFC heavyweight has been dormant since his loss to Pat Barry at UFC on FX 1 in January of 2012. Today, the 26-year-old posted a message on his Facebook account saying he was leaving the fight business.

“To anyone who still follows, competing in the UFC is a tough job on many different levels - getting better staying focused and all the other (expletive) that life brings to you and not to mention I still have to work a full time job to support yourself in the mean time,” Morecraft (7-3) wrote. “There's plenty of "ex professional athletes" out there who are lost , broke, and jobless when competing is over, so with that being said trying to find an easier way to make a living and most importantly be happy so with that being said I'm saying GOODBYE TO THE FIGHT BUISINESS for right now. Nothing's set in stone because we all know that nothing in life is, but for now I've got some other matters to take care of. Thank you all for your support over the years. Thank you and god bless everyone.”

The run in the UFC for Morecraft was a rough one. He entered the organization as a raw 6-foot-6 heavyweight relying on his athleticism. He showed plenty of promise but leaves going 1-3 in the UFC. Morecraft nearly knocked out Stefan Struve in his UFC debut, before being KO’d in the second round at UFC 117 in August of 2010. He won his first UFC fight at UFC Fight Night 24, submitting Sean McCorkle by guillotine.

He was then knocked out by Matt Mitrione and Barry. Following his loss to Barry, on Sept. 1, Morecraft was arrested in Barnstable on suspicion of operating a motor vehicle while under the influence of alcohol.